Suspect in triple homicide in Pawlet denies charges, is held without bail

By Alan J. Keays/VTDigger

A Granville, New York, man charged with killing three family members in Pawlet last month appeared via video from a Rutland jail Thursday afternoon, Oct. 3, to face arraignment on three charges of aggravated murder.

Brian Crossman Jr., 22, appeared from a jail conference room in red prison garb, his head bowed and hands clasped throughout much of the three-minute proceeding in Rutland County Superior criminal court. He said nothing as his lawyer entered not guilty pleas on his behalf. 

According to charging documents, Crossman fatally shot his father, 46-year-old Brian Crossman Sr.; his stepmother, 41-year-old Erica (Pawlusiak) Crossman; and his stepbrother, 13-year-old Colin Taft.

Vermont State Police said the killings took place early on the morning of Sept. 15 inside a family home on Route 133 in Pawlet that Brian Crossman Sr., shared with his wife and stepson.

The younger Crossman was arrested Sept. 20 by New York State Police and has been held in custody since. He agreed to waive extradition to Vermont during a court appearance last week in Warren County, New York.

At the arraignment, Judge Cortland Corsones granted a request by Rutland County State’s Attorney Ian Sullivan to hold Crossman in jail without bail at least until another hearing in the case is held.

Crossman’s actions in committing the three killings showed a “sustained and vicious form of violence against his victims,” Sullivan told the judge.

Attorney Christopher Davis, representing Crossman, did not contest the prosecutor’s request to hold his client without bail.

Corsones called for a hearing to be set soon to consider the weight of the evidence in the case and determine if Crossman will remain jailed while the case against him is pending.

Several family members of the victims attended the hearing Thursday and declined comment following the proceeding.

Each charge of aggravated murder carries the possibility of life behind bars, without the possibility of parole.

According to charging documents, the younger Crossman’s alleged inconsistent statements as well as “significant evidence” gathered from digital evidence and other interviews, led to his arrest. 

Family members, according to the court filings, had also raised concerns about his mental health. Charging documents stated that Brian Crossman Jr.’s mother, who lives in Granville, told investigators she has sought inpatient mental health care for him in the past.

His mother told investigators that about two years ago, she noticed his “behavior beginning to escalate,” the court filings stated. “These behaviors included him talking to himself in a way to suggest he was having a conversation with himself in his own mind.”

“Crossman Jr.’s mental stability seemed to ebb and flow with peaks and valleys,” a state police investigator wrote. “He was described as being very erratic one moment and then seeming to ‘come out of it’ a short time later.”

According to Vermont State Police, Crossman called police a little before 4 a.m. on Sept. 15 reporting that he had found the bodies of three of his family members dead from shotgun wounds inside their home in Pawlet. 

He met with police in the parking lot of the Wells Village School soon after making the call, and an arriving trooper found him in bloodstained clothing, the documents stated.

The younger Crossman had been staying with his father that weekend as his mother, whom he lives with in Granville, had gone away for a few days. He told investigators he had discovered the bodies after having gone out for a walk, according to a police affidavit filed in the case.

Crossman was taken to the state police barracks in Rutland where evidence was collected, including his cellphone, the charging documents stated.

“Detectives attempted to interview Crossman Jr.,” the documents added. “Crossman Jr. advised he did not want to speak to investigators without a lawyer present. No questions were asked of Crossman Jr.”

Questions on custody

In the days following the murders, Vermont state police provided little public information regarding their investigation beyond confirming three people were killed. On Sept. 17, a brief update from state police provided the names of the victims and said no one was in custody. There was no mention made of a suspect, leaving residents of the small southern Rutland County town on edge.

Maj. Dan Trudeau, head of the state police criminal division, said in an interview last week that Crossman left the barracks later on Sept.. 15, the day of the killings, with his mother before any criminal charges were brought.

“We had him detained for a period of time and we were conducting the investigation, trying to get some more information, but ultimately at the end of the day we didn’t feel like we were at a point where we could hold him any longer and not charge him,” Trudeau said.

“We don’t have to like that, but at the end of the day, I tell everybody, I tell my people, friends of mine, and the media, it’s not what you think, it’s what you can prove,” Trudeau said. “Sometimes it takes a little more digging before you have proof.” 

According to charging documents filed on Sept. 20, the Glens Falls (New York) Police Department was called to the Glens Falls Hospital “to assist with a mental health admission” for Crossman late on the night of Sept. 15.

“Brian walked into the Hospital on his own and was checked in and later triaged by hospital staff,” the filing stated. 

On Sept. 20, Corsones, the Rutland judge, approved the arrest warrant for Crossman on the three murder counts in Vermont, court records show.

“I know he was in a hospital in Glens Falls,” Trudeau said of Crossman, adding that on Sept. 20, police had an “understanding that he was probably going to be discharged that day.”

Asked if Crossman’s discharge on Sept. 20 prompted police to act that day to make the arrest, Trudeau said that wasn’t necessarily the case. “The relief that he’s in a facility, wherever it was, was comforting to us, but it really comes down to lucky timing,” he said.

“Just because you have an inkling that a person’s going to get out of the hospital at a certain time frame doesn’t really mean they are going to,” Trudeau added. “We’re still moving and trying to get a chargeable offense in an affidavit approved by a judge from the time he left Rutland.”

Victims remembered

Services from Erica and Brian Crossman Sr. as well as Colin Taft were held Friday, Sept. 27, and over that weekend. 

Erica Crossman was born in Rutland and graduated from Fair Haven Union High School in 2002, according to her obituary. She married Brian Crossman Sr. in June.

She was an employee of Green Mountain Power, holding various positions in her 20 years working there. “She spent her free time hunting, fishing, and tending to her flowers,” the obituary added.

Brian Crossman Sr. was also a longtime employee at Green Mountain Power, serving as a lineworker. In Pawlet, he was a member of the town’s Select Board. 

“Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbor, a hardworking community member who just this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Selectboard,” the Selectboard wrote in a statement following his death.

Green Mountain Power issued a statement following the deaths of Erica and Brian Crossman Sr. 

“We are devastated by this unimaginable loss,” the statement read. 

“Erica and Brian were beloved members of our team, and their deaths have left us all in shock and grief,” the statement added. “They were more than just colleagues; they were integral parts of GMP, bringing their unique talents, kindness, and positive energy to everything they did.”

Taft, according to his obituary, enjoyed spending time outdoors and with his family, was described as living in and near Springfield, where services were held, as well as in Rutland County.  “Fishing was one of his favorite activities along with hunting, going to the racetrack and working on a race car with his dad,” the obituary stated. “He adored his older brother, Luke, and cherished any time they got to spend together.”